Beer52 celebrates success at Startups Awards sponsored by Simply Business

Some of the country’s most exciting new businesses gathered in London last week for the 2014 Startups Awards, sponsored by Simply Business.

The award, now in its 11th year and held at Kensington Roof Gardens, is an annual celebration of the the UK’s entrepreneurial talent, and recognises businesses with gongs as varied as Franchisee of the Year, Crowdfunded Business of the Year, and Restaurant Business of the Year. This year’s judges included Simply Business’s Chris Slater, Ella’s Kitchen founder Paul Lindley, and Mumsnet co-founder Justine Roberts.

Previous winners of the Startups Awards include events app Yplan, furniture company Made.com, and accessories manufacturer The Cambridge Satchel Company.

This year the awards recognised outstanding businesses in fields as varied as food, consumer finance, eyewear, and recruitment. But the Simply Business Startups Business of the Year Award was taken by Beer52, a firm that delivers carefully selected craft beer. Its founder, 24 year old James Brown, was also awarded the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

Startups founder David Lester said: “We have undoubtedly seen some of the brands of the future today, and some of the most talented entrepreneurs in the country.

“Congratulations to all the winners, and especially to Beer52, winners of the Simply Business Startups Business of the Year. The judges were hugely impressed by Beer52’s entry, which showed evidence of enviable growth and a tremendous entrepreneurial zeal from young founder James Brown.

“But the afternoon wasn’t only about the winners. This year there were a record number of entries to the Startups Awards and the standard was the highest we have seen. All 50 finalists can be very proud of their businesses, and it really does bode well for the UK economy that so many high-quality and innovative start-ups are out there and ready to make their mark.”